Rice University

Campus and students

Rice University is located near the Houston Museum District. It is adjacent to the largest medical complex on the planet, the Texas Medical Center, and close to Rice Village. Rice is also less than ¼ of a mile (400 m) from the Houston Zoo and within five miles (8 km) of Six Flags Astroworld. Among the twenty or so museums in the district is the Rice University Art Gallery, open during the school year. For access to other parts of the city, Rice University is served by a light rail station on the Red Line of the Houston METRORail system. All undergraduate students at Rice are given an annual Metro pass, free of charge; graduate students can acquire the Metro pass at a heavily discounted rate.

Related Topics:
Houston Museum District - Texas Medical Center - Rice Village - Houston Zoo - Six Flags Astroworld - Rice University Art Gallery - Light rail - METRORail

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Several interdisciplinary research institutes and think tanks are located on the Rice campus, including the James A. Baker Institute for Public Policy, Rice Quantum Institute, the Rice Engineering Design and Development Institute, the Rice Design Alliance, the Computer and Information Technology Institute, the Center for Nanoscale Science and Technology, and the Center for Biological and Environmental Nanotechnology.

Related Topics:
James A. Baker Institute for Public Policy - Rice Quantum Institute - Rice Engineering Design and Development Institute - Rice Design Alliance - Computer and Information Technology Institute - Center for Nanoscale Science and Technology - Center for Biological and Environmental Nanotechnology

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The campus itself is organized into a number of quadrangles, and features buildings designed in a style informally called neo-Byzantine. The Academic Quad is centered on the memorial to William Marsh Rice. It includes the administration buildings, Fondren Library, and the buildings for physics, languages, architecture, and the humanities. The Engineering Quad is centered on a set of three sculptures by Michael Heizer collectively entitled "45/90/180" and includes buildings for the electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, chemistry and computer science departments. The Residential Quad is home to a college system similar to those at Oxford and Cambridge, and the nine residential colleges (Baker, Brown, Hanszen, Jones, Lovett, Martel, Sid Rich, Wiess, Will Rice) act as self-governed social units.

Related Topics:
Quadrangles - Byzantine - William Marsh Rice - Michael Heizer - College system - Oxford - Cambridge - Baker - Brown - Hanszen - Jones - Lovett - Martel - Sid Rich - Wiess - Will Rice

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During the sometimes heavy rains that impact the Houston area, and the associated flooding that sometimes occurs, the campus earns the derisive nickname "William Rice's Marsh," a play on words using the founder's name.

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Each residential college has unique traditions, including Baker 13, Beer Bike, and the Night of Decadence (also known as NOD). Due in part to the unique traditions of the college system, Seventeen magazine named Rice the "coolest college in the land" in its "Top 100 Coolest Colleges" issue (October 2002).

Related Topics:
Baker 13 - Beer Bike - Night of Decadence - NOD - Seventeen - October - 2002

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Approximately one quarter of undergraduates are National Merit Scholars, and Rice often holds the highest percentage in its freshman class among all American universities. Rice has also recently ranked No. 1 for the percentage of its students receiving National Science Fellowships, though it is also known for its strength in the social sciences and humanities. All undergraduate students of Rice are members of the residential college system, and there are no fraternities or sororities.

Related Topics:
National Merit Scholars - National Science Fellowships - Social sciences - Humanities - Residential college system - Fraternities

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